Forums still are a pretty small minority.
About the question I'll play all kinds of games tbh
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I’m mainly interested in AAA games, am I in the minority on ERA?
- Thread starter Mack
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Forums still are a pretty small minority.
About the question I'll play all kinds of games tbh
Same OP.
I do love game journalism though, so I read about games all the time. but actually investing XX amount of time into something, I save it for the big titles.
I do love game journalism though, so I read about games all the time. but actually investing XX amount of time into something, I save it for the big titles.
Why does more money invested in a game automatically mean more fun? I don't get this logic. You couldn't force me to play Assasins Creed Odyssey, but I played Hollow Knight 3 times already.
I play primarily AAA games. I like some indie stuff but it seems like most of it uses old out-of-favor mechanics from the 90s or early 2000s that older fans miss or they're just weird for the sake of being weird.
Retro and artsy just isn't my thing when it comes to games.
Indie shit is as samey as AAA.
Retro and artsy just isn't my thing when it comes to games.
Indie shit is as samey as AAA.
I like em all, but I do appreciate the extra polish and focus that goes into AAA games.
I play a lot of indie and AA games that end up being tedious or frustrating because a good concept is half-baked due to the constraints in that space.
I play a lot of indie and AA games that end up being tedious or frustrating because a good concept is half-baked due to the constraints in that space.
AAA games are like blockbuster action movies. Maybe like 1 or 2 are good per year, the rest aren't worth your time.
I love em' when they are good, they are AMAZING. I am a big fan of seeing "bleeding edge tech" in games and that is really the only place to get it.
That doesn't mean I don't play and like other games, but really there a very few "turn down the lights and let this thing wash over me" games outside of the AAA space. Doesnt mean they dont exist (Tetris Effect, Sayonara Hearts) I just that its expensive as hell to make showpiece games.
That doesn't mean I don't play and like other games, but really there a very few "turn down the lights and let this thing wash over me" games outside of the AAA space. Doesnt mean they dont exist (Tetris Effect, Sayonara Hearts) I just that its expensive as hell to make showpiece games.
I do switch it up and play Indes aswell, but yes AAA is where it is at for me. Though for me AAA has nothing to do with Michael Bay, or explosions or mainstream or Marvel movies or any of that sort. It is more about big, highly anticipated, often very expensive, graphically groundbreaking games that take 3-8 years to complete by a huge team.
AAA will always be my love and what excites me the most. Just when I think of huge gigantic games like Last of Us 2, Cyberpunk 2077 or Final Fantasy VII Remake I am filled with joy and anticipation!
Nothing better than a single player AAA game with great story, great graphics, great gameplay and you play it and are fully immersed into it and a not a single care in the world about other stuff.
AAA will always be my love and what excites me the most. Just when I think of huge gigantic games like Last of Us 2, Cyberpunk 2077 or Final Fantasy VII Remake I am filled with joy and anticipation!
Nothing better than a single player AAA game with great story, great graphics, great gameplay and you play it and are fully immersed into it and a not a single care in the world about other stuff.
With less time to play I generally lean AAA. I think with services like PS+ (previously) giving 2-3 indie games a month I just stopped buying them. probably have a list of indie games 15-20 long I legitimately would want to play from PS+. So when games like Obra Din, Disco Elysium, Outer Wilds, etc. come out I want to play them but usually with price points of ~$35 CAD I balk and add them to my wish list on steam or playstation and wait until they're 50% or eventually a PS+ game or free on the Epic Game store or something.
It's too bad because I go back through the lists of my top games for each year and there is usually several indie games on them. I think when people talk about music or tv shows being devalued through services this is a pretty good example of it happening in games. I know The Last of Us 2 or Cyber Punk aren't going to be on a service anytime soon so I'll being buying them full price, smaller indie or AA games not so much.
It's too bad because I go back through the lists of my top games for each year and there is usually several indie games on them. I think when people talk about music or tv shows being devalued through services this is a pretty good example of it happening in games. I know The Last of Us 2 or Cyber Punk aren't going to be on a service anytime soon so I'll being buying them full price, smaller indie or AA games not so much.
I play like 1-2 AAA games a year, mostly just FROM Software releases though. As for the rest, I only play smaller productions including AA and indie games.
You'd have to force me to play something like the newest Ubisoft or EA releases.
You'd have to force me to play something like the newest Ubisoft or EA releases.
All of the above. If you put a gun to my head and forced me to pick one, I guess I'd have to pick AAA solely because of Fromsoft's output. If Fromsoft wasn't pumping out 10/10 games that were tailored to my exact tastes, I'd pick indie.
You just need to see the tons of threads about new AAA games or the GOTY awards or how large the OTs gets. Not complaining about that either just it's not so secret.
I don't understand, it's like saying you only love big CGI movies like Marvel and Pixar movies, there is so much more than this
I enjoy running around an open world with a sword while collecting loot, weapons, and armor.
That's really all I need.
But yes, I'd prefer for that experience to be as polished and pretty as possible.
That's really all I need.
But yes, I'd prefer for that experience to be as polished and pretty as possible.
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Same. I like them all and play them all and don't really choose any over the other.
I've started to mostly move away from AAA games because a significant number of them have become incredibly derivative. I'd be okay if I never had to hide in a bush while monitoring AI patrol routes while in my Detective/Hunter/Hologram Vision Mode, whistling or throwing an object to get the closest enemy's attention, pressing a button to watch a stealth kill animation and repeating this process for 10-20 hours. Add in looting the enemy and managing my inventory if the game has adopted "RPG-Lite" mechanics in an effort to give the illusion of gameplay depth. I'm pretty stoked for Cyberpunk 2077 and The Last of Us Part II but I'm afraid I'll have no choice but to hide in bushes in detective mode until developers find something else.
Mostly AAA games for me as well. I love story-driven games with great graphics, quality acting etc.
I don't even know the true distinction between AA and AAA anymore. It made sense to me in the PS2/GCN era, but not now.
Like, is Luigi's Mansion 3 and Mario Maker 2 AAA or AA? What is Astral Chain?
Like, is Luigi's Mansion 3 and Mario Maker 2 AAA or AA? What is Astral Chain?
It depends. I'm playing Dragon Quest, a AAA J-RPG. I just bought Kiwami 2, Bloodstained, and VC4. I'd say the last two are AA but Kiwami 2 is about as close to AAA as we're going to get.
So yeah, I'm pretty even. Just depends on the game tbh.
So yeah, I'm pretty even. Just depends on the game tbh.
Yeah I bought odyssey last year and waited until I could get my 4k tv back. But now I have it and just can't find the time to slog thru it
Same here. AAA is 95% of my time. I'm going to play Outerworlds though soon.
I don't really give Indies or AA much attention, my time is precious so need to maximise my enjoyment, and stuff like poor animation, UI, gaming art done on a budget almost instantly kills my interest.
I dropped Outerwilds because the aesthetics and missing QOL features that I expect from AAA wasn't there.
I don't really give Indies or AA much attention, my time is precious so need to maximise my enjoyment, and stuff like poor animation, UI, gaming art done on a budget almost instantly kills my interest.
I dropped Outerwilds because the aesthetics and missing QOL features that I expect from AAA wasn't there.
I'll never understand why people need "pristine" animation or graphics to have something be enjoyable.
Can someone remind me of what the definition of a AAA vs AA title is?
Is it just a function of budget?
Is Control AAA? The Outer Worlds? Metro? Dota 2? Destiny 2? League of Legends? Apex Legends?
Is it just a function of budget?
Is Control AAA? The Outer Worlds? Metro? Dota 2? Destiny 2? League of Legends? Apex Legends?
But is the implication that games that aren't AAA are not "pristine" or don't "look good"?
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Yeah, but to require it is batty to me. Something doesn't become unplayable just because the graphics are no longer state of the art years later.
The thing is these days most people have too many choices and not enough time. It makes perfect sense to prioritise gamed with the most money put into them because on average they're the highest quality experiences, especially when they're usually the same price too. It's not about being unplayable or even bad.
These days I'm fussy as hell because because we're inundated with the things to play so I only bother with something that's really good. Most of the time for me they just happen to be AAA games. It's also genre dependent to an extent too. Open world games for example need as much money poured into them as possible, otherwise they easily become repetitive and stretched too thin.
If something Is 7/7.5 on paper that's a good game but when you've got a limited amount of time then is it really worth playing? The Outer Worlds is a perfect example of this to me. It's a potential 9/10 game that ends up being in the 7 range because it was extremely obvious a lot of things were gimped due to the AA budget.
Gotta disagree here. A higher budget often seems to mean a game needs more of what I think studios view as mass market appeal. This, I think, results in more derivative gameplay and less interesting experiences.
I see quality experiences as ones that break the mold or provide something unique and inspired. Polish, graphics and amount of content aren't what jump to mind when I think of quality. Instead, I'd look to stuff like Obra Dinn, Outer Wilds and Disco Elysium.
I can't agree at all. I find so many AAA games just boring to play and a slog to get through. Give me a game with a "gimped" budget that actually does something interesting instead of being yet another derivative open-world game. I mean, they're generally fine I guess but I get so bored of them after just a couple of hours.
AAA/AA, have almost negative interest in Indie games. Maybe one day that special something will come along for me.
As I said in my post it's also genre dependent. The most popular and mainstream console games absolutely benefit hugely from higher budgets and those are what most people play. Even when talking about 2D side scrollers the most popular/highly rated games are stuff like Ori, Hollow Knight, Cuphead look and "feel" like the AAA titles within their scope/genre regardless of how few people or money was spent on it.
You mentioned 3 great games that are also pretty niche and not designed to for mass appeal. You don't need a massive budget to produce a great CRPG like Disco Elysium in the same way you do for an open world RPG like The Witcher 3 or Fallout. Games like Greedfall, Elex and even The Outer Worlds are noticeable step down. There are exceptions like Divinity 2 but on average the lower budget games in that genre are just handicapped and can't compete.
My most memorable experiences in gaming the past decade have been primarily from indie games.
That's not to say there haven't been plenty of amazing AAA and AA games though.
I really don't have a preference when it comes down to it. I found it odd that people do in the first place.
That's not to say there haven't been plenty of amazing AAA and AA games though.
I really don't have a preference when it comes down to it. I found it odd that people do in the first place.
I still disagree. I would be perfectly content if I were somehow banned from Steam and all of the major console services and had to rely on itch.io for the rest of my life. I would still have a ton of fascinating games to play that would never see mainstream success.